WENSDOM: Envisioning your life

Have you ever heard of those people who write themselves a check for a million dollars and promise themselves that one day they'll cash it? Or someone who hangs a picture up of a house in their studio apartment with the goal of one day owning it? Well, no matter what the goal or vision, they all achieved it or made the dream a reality.  It's one thing to set goals for yourself, it's another to create a tangible reminder and force yourself to look at it daily. Much to my mother's insistence, I finally sat down and put together a vision board for myself. Unlike the million dollar check or the house dream, my dreams are much more abstract than that. I don't simply wish to one day be a millionaire or own a house, not that I wouldn't mind if such happenings where find their way into my life, but I have lots of goals and hopes and aspirations so a vision board was the best way for me to showcase what I hope for myself.

It was so rewarding putting the finishing touches on that board. It felt like a huge step in the right direction. Something about clearly stating what is you hope to achieve and do with your life that gives yourself a sense a purpose. I think a lot of young people today fall victim to apathy and the unwillingness to sit down and really envision things for their lives. I don't mean things like getting married, I mean career goals or lifetime achievement goals. I'd say think of something that doesn't necessarily involve someone else (relationship wise) to achieve, like wanting to stand on Mt. Kilimanjaro, or shaking hands with a king. For me, one of my major hopes is to always work in a career field that allows me to express myself creatively through writing, fashion, and photography. If you're wadding through your young adulthood like a zombie maybe you should sit down put together a vision board for yourself too.

Making a vision board is really simple. It's narrowing down what your vision is that can be the challenge. I pulled from my inspirations first, like Josephine Baker because she became an adoptive mother of twelve due to childbearing complications and I to want to become an adoptive mother. Or Andy Warhol, because he didn't just prosper in one career field he led many different careers and I also have huge ambitions to do many different things. I then started pulling from huge reaching for the stars goals, like the magazine clipping. It's a clipping from my favorite magazine column which I have dreams of one day writing for. I also pulled from not just career goals but personal life goals. The word "beyoutiful" is something I have to tell myself on my journey of self confidence. The photograph of the map represents my desire to want to travel and see the world and connect with people of different cultures. 

Armed with my vision board and my goals clearly stated I plan to never sell myself short and never to lose sight of them.  

~Turtle

TASTE TEST: Egg sandwich

This is a quick and easy breakfast meal that can be made in a variety of ways. It can made on toast, a biscuit, or like I'm going to show you today, a bagel. All you need is a bagel of your choice, I was recently turned on to the thinly sliced bagels. They're a lot more forgiving in the calorie department and a better value than the standard size because so many come in a pack. Meat of your choice, I've chosen pork sausage patties, because patties make placing on a sandwich a lot easier. And then two eggs and shredded cheese.

First, you'll want to cook your meat in the skillet. Once the meat is prepared move it aside and then scramble your eggs. As the eggs start to cook, add a pinch of salt and pepper before sprinkling a handful of shredded cheese. Then scramble them up. I really like to scramble them hard when it comes to making a sandwich, some people like them a little runny. Move the eggs aside once they're cooked, they tend to cook really fast. Pop your thin bagel in the toaster, on a much lower setting than you would a normal bagel. 

Once the toast is ready, spread some butter and then combine everything, eggs on the first followed by the sausage. 

Then, enjoy! 

~Turtle

Slam poetry and me

I remember the first day I ever heard slam performed. A slam poet came into my fifth grade class and performed a poem about her mother's kitchen. She was a tall gorgeous young black woman with a polished afro, wooden bangles that danced when she talked, huge hoop earrings, and this awesome baggy sweater that I still remember years later. She helped my class write poems that we then had to perform. It was so much fun, I wrote about my grandma who had recently passed away. From that day forward slam poetry had a strong place in my heart. Everything about slam poetry entices me. Even it's name slam poetry...like you're slam dunking your thoughts. Or it's other name spoken word. I had never heard poetry to sound and move like music before. Not like that anyway. As I got older I put all notions of poetry on the back burner until recently. I started writing my own poetry again last semester. I'd write them by hand in my journal first and then edit them on my computer until they were perfect! I think some of them are even ready to go to slams! Our school has open mike nights in which anything can be performed...I think I'm going to talk myself into going. Before I really started taking my attempts at writing slam seriously I studied. The thing with slam is that it's powerful when you read it, but it's the performance by the original author that really harnesses the power with every word. You can't just stand there and just read your slam poetry, you have to perform it, preach it, declare it! It's often angry, but I've found enough examples of all emotions and genres. Maybe my love of slam is why I love rap music so much too. They're very similar!

Here are some of my favorite slam poets and their poems:

Sarah Kay, "If I Should Have a Daughter."

One of my favorite poems in general! (Her name has nothing to do with it :p)

Jeanann Verlee, "40 Love Letters."

This poem is just...glorious! 

Nicole Homer, "When your boyfriend asks." 

Such a great message on no selling yourself short.

I could go on and on! Hopefully these will lead you to others like they've done for me, enjoy! 

~Turtle

SATURDAY DIME: Why We Love Ikea

 

1. The prices aren't ridiculous. You can get a bed frame, mattress, and slats for under $500. Also their cookware and dishes are a VERY good quality and price.

2. The store is super user-friendly. You can just pull bed frames off the shelves and be confident that it's the right product in the right place.

3. The merchandise in the store changes within a season so there's always something new to find. Every time you go back, there's bound to be something new.

4.The staff is knowledgeable and friendly. Plus they actually know where items are, which is especially helpful for first-time visitors. (Ikea can be a bit of a maze)

5. Everything is basic and simple so your personal style can shine through. Kind of like the American Apparel of furniture and home goods.

6. Their product's last! (Kay has a table and chair set for kids that she's had and it's still being used by her little cousin in North Carolina!) 

7. It's a DIY playground. You can take everything there and make it yourself and personalize it any way you want.

8. You can drop your kids off! (This is super helpful when my sister wants to go but doesn't want her children touching everything)

9. It's clean. It's not like one of those furniture stores with crushed cheeze-its in the bunk bed section where the last child was hanging out. It's a really well put together place.

10. They serve food. Who doesn't get hungry while shopping? Plus you won't break the bank if you come with a family. (The meatballs and lingonberry juices are the best.)

~ Bunny & Turtle

PETFO: Perry is getting a new home!

It is time! As much I don't want to have to...Perry has to be moved into a glass enclosure since it has a lid. Before the harsh tortoise critics start throwing their tomatoes at me, I do have good reason! My cat has finally realized Perry is in his bin and last night I found him inside the bin eyeing him. That's just too close for comfort, so for Perry's safety I'm putting him in a glass terrarium. I'm not sure what Sinatra's intentions were...he was just checking him out most likely but to keep the peace and give me some peace of mind Perry is getting a new home. I'll post an update post all about how to safely move your tortoise to a new home and how to make them as comfortable as possible in the new setting.  

~Turtle

FANCY FRIDAY: Sunday Best

I love this sundress I found in my mom's closet! She'd had it forever apparently. It's a little loose on me so I decided to belt it, but I just adore the chiffon and the floral print. I really fell in love with it because it has that loose shapeless cut that was popular in the late 90's! I paired it with these brown oxford heels I got earlier this week, I need to break them in! (Thanks mom for the photography!)

~Turtle

THURSDIY: Pillow Bow

THURSDIY: Pillow Bows/ Pillow Accents

This is a fun, easy and relatively fast way to bring some color to basic pillows, and to bring color to any room.

Supplies

1. Scissors
2. Fleece (or any fabric of your choice)
3. Safety Pins (two per bow)

Step 1

Cut the fabric into two large rectangles and two skinnier rectangles. The exact size does not matter, as long as they look relatively the same. See picture below for example.

Step 2

Take one of the larger rectangles and fold the longer edge inwards. This helps to hide the cut and uneven edges of your bow. When using fleece, just press down on the sides of the fabric and it should stay down.

Step 3

This time, take the two shorter edges and fold them inwards so they will fold on top of the longer side edges. 

Step 4

Now just squeeze the middle of the fabric so that it starts to get its bow shape. If any of the creases come undone, just refold them.

Step 5

Take each corner of the bow and fold them towards the middle of the bow that you created. Again, press down on the fabric to that it maintains its shape and that the edges stay in place.

Step 6

Now just take the thinner piece of fabric and place it under the bow shape that you have created.

Step Seven

My favorite part! Take the thinner piece of fabric and tie it around the bow shape so that all corners are tucked inside the knot. Remember to pull tightly so that the fabric is secure, but if it comes undone it's very easy to just stick the corners inside of the knot.

Step 8

Using the safety pins, place them wherever you want on the side of the bow that will not be seen. From my experience, it helps to have both safety pins on the outside of the knot on each side. This helps to keep the bow secure wherever you decide to place it.

All done!

Place the bow wherever you would like. I decided to put it on my pillows because they were just so...plain to me. Plus, I didn't want to spend a bunch of money on getting new pillow shams or pillows when I had fabric available. I'd love to see where you place your bows!

~ Bunny